March 2018

03/29/2018

Most of today’s MBA students, not employers, must foot the bill for their own degrees.

Top business schools compete fiercely for the best prospects.

Sixty-one percent of this year’s MBA students — up from 41 percent in 2014 — receive scholarships or fellowships based on need, merit or both.

As the U.S. job market strengthens, enrollment in full-time MBA programs has dropped by a third nationwide since 2010, with prospective students weighing the cost and relative value of the degree for their future careers, driving a flight to the top programs.

For many young professionals, it’s not an easy choice. Fifty-six percent of UCLA Anderson’s full-time MBA class of 2017 took out loans. Their average debt at graduation was $85,000 — or $1,000 dollars a month for the next decade.

Devon Dickau (’15), is the 2018 recipient of UCLA’s Young Alumnus of the Year award. The recognition was announced by Associate Vice Chancellor Julie Sina with the formal presentation to be made at an awards ceremony and dinner in June. He is a “double Bruin,” earning his undergraduate degree from UCLA in 2007 with a B.A. in American literature and culture. He also holds an M.Ed. in technology, innovation and education from Harvard University.

“The UCLA Alumni Awards Committee was truly impressed by the depth and breadth of Devon’s involvement from the moment he stepped onto our campus as a student through his multiple alumni leadership roles today,” said Associate Vice Chancellor for Alumni Affairs Julie Sina. “Devon’s passion and commitment to diversity and inclusion span his professional and alumni involvement. He exemplifies the Bruin narrative we recognize through the association awards.”

Currently, Dickau is a manager in Deloitte’s Human Capital Consulting practice and chief of staff for the Diversity & Inclusion Client Service Center of Excellence. Prior to joining Deloitte, he worked as a community educator in rural Tanzanian villages; a social impact consultant for the entertainment industry; and a higher education administrator, including as a co-founder of UCLA Parent & Family Programs.

Dickau made his presence felt during his years at Anderson. Among his key leadership positions and projects are:

Anderson Student Association – Section President (2013–14); VP, Student Affairs (2014–15). In the latter role, he came up with the idea of shooting the “brick background” portraits for all students at the beginning of the school year. He also founded the Club of the Month honor and partnered with the school’s marketing and communications office to design the first-ever standard club posters.

Net Impact – Director, Impact Media/Technology (2013–14); Chair, Center for Social Innovation Planning Committee (2014–15), helping in this role to found Impact@Anderson.

Out@Anderson – Director, Outreach (2013–14); Co-President (2014–15). He founded Anderson LGBTQ Awareness Week and worked with the marketing and commuications team on the first-ever LGBTQ-specific Anderson website.

“As a student, Devon made a lasting impact on the Anderson community,” said Associate Dean Jill Baldauf (B.A.’79, ’81), who heads the school’s Office of Alumni Relations. “It’s no surprise that he continues to live an impactful life as an alumnus. On behalf of the entire Anderson alumni network, I want to congratulate Devon for this well-deserved recognition.”

In in the San Martín coffee-growing region of northern Peru, Don Pablo explains “coffee leaf rust,” a disease that has wiped out a significant amount of coffee crops worldwide

UCLA Anderson MBA students conduct Applied Management Research (AMR) projects in lieu of a thesis. The nation’s first business school field study program, AMR partners students with top organizations to solve a key strategic problem. The Center for Global Management sponsored four UCLA Anderson Class of 2018 teams to work with Conservation International, which partners with indigenous groups internationally and pairs local expertise with student consultants.

This story is one of the four by students who collaborated with CI to help find sustainable solutions to enhance economies in environmentally sensitive parts of the world. UCLA Anderson Class of 2018 AMR students made their final presentations on March 9.

Our Applied Management Research (AMR) team engaged with Conservation International to support the development of an environmentally sustainable value chain for coffee production in the San Martín region of northern Peru. The goal was to identify the key to scaling current efforts to improve sustainability by identifying optimal linkages in the value chain for intervention. Evaluating the current split of value-capture across the chain to understand how best to incentivize local farmers was inherent to these efforts and any intervention efforts need to consider the social and economic impact on the small communities in the San Martín region.

After several weeks of extensive secondary research, we understood the broader economic context in which the coffee sector in Peru operates. A combination of price pressure and limited power relative to middlemen in the value chain left smallholder farmers exposed to the fluctuations of the volatile coffee market. Along with the unfavorable effect this had on living conditions, the corresponding drive for increased yield to make up for limited pricing power adversely impacted the environment (coffee farming has been identified as the leading cause of deforestation in the San Martín region). Our primary research entailed interviews with coffee industry players and subject matter experts, and an in-country visit to meet with smallholder farmers, local community representatives and leaders of cooperatives.

03/28/2018

UCLA Anderson MBA students conduct Applied Management Research (AMR) projects in lieu of a thesis. The nation’s first business school field study program, AMR partners students with top organizations to solve a key strategic problem. The Center for Global Management sponsored four UCLA Anderson Class of 2018 teams to work with Conservation International, which partners with indigenous groups internationally and pairs local expertise with student consultants.

This story is one of the four by students who collaborated with CI to help find sustainable solutions to enhance economies in environmentally sensitive parts of the world. UCLA Anderson Class of 2018 AMR students made their final presentations on March 9.

In 2015, the United Nations set an ambitious goal for the entire globe by the year 2030: to “transform our world by ending poverty, protecting the planet and ensuring prosperity for all” through sustainable development. To align with the UN 2030 Sustainable Development goals, Guyana entered into partnership with Conservation International, a globally renowned NGO, to improve and expand the country’s existing sustainable development program catering to its numerous indigenous communities.

Conservation International, in collaboration with Guyana’s Ministry of Indigenous People’s Affairs (MoIPA) and the Kanuku Mountains Community Representative Group (KMCRG) of Region 9 (one of 10 administrative regions of Guyana), are piloting a program called Sustainable Development Framework (SDF) in order to create a standardized methodology for an impactful and successful sustainable development of the indigenous communities in Guyana.

03/27/2018

“Eco-Rangers” in the field in Botswana. The premise of social enterprise Meat Naturally Pty. (MNP) is to restore traditional cattle herding as a profession, with technology, dignity and a targeted emphasis on the environment.

UCLA Anderson MBA students conduct Applied Management Research (AMR) projects in lieu of a thesis. The nation’s first business school field study program, AMR partners students with top organizations to solve a key strategic problem. The Center for Global Management sponsored four UCLA Anderson Class of 2018 teams to work with Conservation International, which partners with indigenous groups internationally and pairs local expertise with student consultants.

This story is one of the four by students who collaborated with CI to help find sustainable solutions to enhance economies in environmentally sensitive parts of the world. UCLA Anderson Class of 2018 AMR students made their final presentations on March 9.

This is the jarring, personal testimony of a cattle farmer in Botswana. It directly challenges a first-world (mis)understanding of “conservation” and demonstrates how environmental and habitat conservation efforts cannot be pursued as a one-note campaign to save land and wildlife. Conservation is a balancing act affecting both the Earth’s most vulnerable natural ecosystems and the livelihoods of people who live there. Vital biodiversity includes human beings.

In human settlements that overlap with elephant migration routes, elephants will venture into fields to feast on (and destroy) gardens and grazing land. This problem is complicated by the fact that many elephants are fleeing poachers in neighboring nations that may not have the same protections in place as Botswana’s pro-conservation government. The protected lands of the Okavango Delta are designed to provide sanctuary.

03/26/2018

Left to right: Daniel Osorio, Traci Kuratomi, Will Berman and Kevin Oswald visited a fishing cooperative in the Galapagos

UCLA Anderson MBA students conduct Applied Management Research (AMR) projects in lieu of a thesis. The nation’s first business school field study program, AMR partners students with top organizations to solve a key strategic problem. The Center for Global Management sponsored four UCLA Anderson Class of 2018 teams to work with Conservation International, which partners with indigenous groups internationally and pairs local expertise with student consultants.

This story is one of the four by students who collaborated with CI to help find sustainable solutions to enhance economies in environmentally sensitive parts of the world. UCLA Anderson Class of 2018 AMR students made their final presentations on March 9.

In 2015, the Galapagos Marine Reserve instituted various “no-take zones,” which restricted fishing in areas deemed vital for adequate biodiversity and sustainability of fish stocks. Our AMR team is working with Conservation International to increase the market value of local fishermen’s tuna catch. Tuna is an important source of income for the people in the Galapagos Islands, and they need ways to sustain and improve their lives while still protecting the natural beauty and diversity of the Galapagos.

Galapagos is synonymous with nature and biology and, since the time of Charles Darwin, world-renowned for its endemic wildlife species. Therefore, protecting its biodiversity is an important task, but increased restrictions on fishing stress the local fishermen. Already under strict regulations to fish in artisanal ways without the use of more efficient but environmentally damaging industrial techniques, fishermen often struggle to make ends. With roughly 3 percent of the employed population working as fishermen, this is a problem for the local community and its economy.

Considered by many the hub of the Pacific Rim, Los Angeles is nothing if not one of the most international cities on Earth. UCLA Anderson is a magnet for students pursuing careers with global companies — including women from across the U.S. and the world who work in diverse industries.

On March 8, UCLA Anderson highlighted the school’s global reach by convening a panel in honor of International Women’s Day. Representatives among the student body from India, Russia, Brazil and China participated in an informal chat with Kayla Carpenter (’19), president of the UCLA Anderson Women’s Business Connection, to reveal surprisingly unified experiences as women in their home countries and here in the U.S.

03/09/2018

UCLA Anderson Forecast’s first quarterly report in 2018 sees a definitive change in the nation’s economy, which is moving from one of sluggish growth and low inflation to one of accelerating growth and moderate inflation. At the same time, with President Trump’s announced plans to increase tariffs on steel and aluminum, things could get worse, as domestic costs rise and foreign producers retaliate. Amid the changes forecast for the national outlook, California, still leading the nation in job growth, is expected to continue to outperform the U.S.

The National Forecast

The sudden 10% decline in stock prices and the rise in long-term interest rates in early February signaled what economists label a “regime change,” as the economic environment shifts from one of sluggish growth and low inflation to one of accelerating growth and moderate inflation. Concurrently, monetary policy is transitioning from one of accommodation to one of normalization, with four federal funds rate hikes in 2018; while fiscal policy moves from a moderate deficit to one with trillion-dollar deficits on the horizon. The $300 billion budget compromise during a two-year period, combined with the recently enacted $1.5 trillion tax cuts during a 10-year period, highlighted the demise of the so-called deficit hawks. The budget compromise also called for a substantial increase in defense spending, which ratified the Forecast’s long-held belief that the era of tightening in that sector is over.

03/07/2018

Team members met with female business leaders in Jamaica, which reports the highest percentage of women in business and management globally. Left to right: MBA student David Poli; Eva Lewis, corporate and investment banking head of Citi Jamaica; Cathrine Kennedy, group chief officer of GraceKennedy Limited; Marjory Kennedy, director of administration of Jamaica Fruit & Shipping; Mariame McIntosh Robinson, president and CEO of First Global Bank; Lisa Lewis, founder/CEO of Great People Solutions; Patricia Francis, chairman of the Trade Facilitation Task Force for the Government of Jamaica; MBA student Jessica Lin.

UCLA Anderson MBA students conduct Applied Management Research projects in lieu of a thesis. The nation’s first business school field study program, AMR partners students with top organizations to solve a key strategic problem. The Center for Global Management sponsored one UCLA Anderson Class of 2018 team to work the International Labour Organization, which brings together governments, employers and workers of 187 member states to set labor standards, develop policies and devise programs promoting decent work for all women and men. The project focused specifically on engaging leaders in the business community through a new ILO publication on women in business and management.

UCLA Anderson Class of 2018 AMR students make their final presentations on March 9.

Over the past four months, our team of five full-time MBA students has had the privilege of working with the International Labour Organization Bureau of Employers’ Activities (ILO-ACT/EMP). Headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, the ILO-ACT/EMP is a specialized unit of the United Nations (UN) that supports employers’ organizations (EOs), such as chambers of commerce and industry associations, to inform their members on topics related to job creation and employee well-being.

In 2019, the ILO-ACT/EMP will publish a new global report focusing on Women in Business and Management (WIBM) and our team worked closely with our client counterpart, Anderson alumna Jae-hee Chang (Ph.D. ’08), to research and ultimately make recommendations on how to increase business leaders' engagement with this new publication.